The present invention relates to trolling motors, and more particularly to speed control devices for use with watercraft employing trolling motors.
For a number of years, persons involved in sport and recreational fishing have employed trolling motors to enable relatively fine control of their watercraft. Such trolling motors allow for control of both watercraft speed and positioning, enabling the person to maintain a desired location, position, or speed as required for the most effective fishing experience. While trolling motors have traditionally been hand-operated, electronic models of cable or radio-controlled varieties have been developed to improve the ease of watercraft control.
The electronic models often employ a foot pedal interface that incorporates speed and/or directional controls. A typical foot pedal control includes an on/off switch, a right/left turn interface, and a variable speed control. The speed control can be a rotary or linear varistor (variable resistor). In some models currently on the market, speed control is achieved by providing a speed control module which is used to pre-set a desired speed level, a xe2x80x9cconstant onxe2x80x9d switch (which, when activated, maintains the desired speed at the selected level), and a tap switch or similar mechanism that can be depressed to momentarily increase the motor speed up to the pre-set level. Such a tap switch is normally a momentary contact switch (a depress-and-hold version, disengaging when pressure is released). Using such a device, the operator would select a speed and achieve it by engaging either the constant on switch or momentary tap switch, and then proceed to steer the watercraft through the right/left turn interface.
The problem with many current models is that, while they seek to provide fine speed and directional control to address wind and water current conditions, they are often difficult to work with and of limited use in the face of changing conditions. For example, a wind gust can push a watercraft out of a desired location above a target fishing hole by forcing the watercraft bow to the side and leaving it vulnerable to further gusts against the watercraft side. Having only one pre-set speed and a cumbersome mechanism for changing that speed is not desirable, as it is difficult if not impossible to counter such rapidly changing environmental conditions. A slide bar switch (a linear varistor) often sticks or binds, and any type of speed control that requires manual adjustment is difficult to work with while controlling a watercraft utilizing an electric trolling motor, particularly where constant fine adjustment is necessary. Rather than enjoying a day of fishing, the person spends most of their time in the frustrating task of constantly shifting the speed and directional controls to maintain the desired position.
Prior attempts to resolve this problem include those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,892,338 and 6,054,831, both assigned to Zebco Corporation of Tulsa, Okla. (the xe2x80x9cZebco patentsxe2x80x9d). In nearly identical disclosures, the Zebco patents teach a radio frequency remote control device for trolling motors. As can be seen particularly in FIG. 6 of the drawings in each of the Zebco patents, there are a number of speed control options that allow an operator to increase or decrease the trolling motor speed. Specifically, a maximum switch 108 allows the operator to immediately select full trolling motor speed with the depression of a button. Also, fast switch 106 and slow switch 110 enable the operator to adjust the trolling motor speed level up or down as desired.
However, while the Zebco patents do provide useful speed control options, they suffer from some limitations in their usefulness. For example, the maximum switch 108 does enable the operator to select the maximum throttle speed afforded by the trolling motor by depressing the switch 108. Depressing switch 108 results in the trolling motor increasing from the operator selected base speed to the trolling motor""s full speed. Using such a maximum speed control device results in extreme stresses to the trolling motor mounting system and excessive speeds render fine steering practically impossible, potentially resulting in dangerous situations when close to shore or other watercraft. This feature essentially provides the watercraft operator with a hook rescue mechanism, where the fishing lure has been snagged on some underwater obstacle and retrieval requires full speed of the trolling motor to return the watercraft to the position of the snagged hook, but not a means to address shifting wind and water current conditions.
In addition, the fast switch and slow switch fail to provide the ease and precision of electric trolling motor speed control operation desired by watercraft operators. The fast switch simply increases the trolling motor speed by one increment with a single depression of the switch, while holding the switch depressed ramps up the speed; the slow switch provides the opposite result, decreasing the speed. Essentially, such switches simply replace the standard rotary or slide bar speed selector controls, requiring the operator to repeatedly depress the slow and fast switches to achieve the desired speed for the prevailing conditions. The necessity for the operator to break concentration and depress the speed control switches one increment at a time in an effort to compensate for varying wind and water current conditions decreases the operator""s ability to effectively engage in fishing. If the fast switch is depressed and held for a number of seconds, the trolling motor speed will increase, but small inaccuracies in switch depression timing can result in erratic trolling motor speed changes thereby necessitating that the operator expend time and attention to correct the speed control setting.
The result of developments thus far in the art is the provision of various types of speed controls that, while providing improvements in some respects over the hand-operated trolling motors of the past, fail to address the requirements of trolling in varying environmental conditions. Wind and water current changes are a frustrating reality for those engaged in trolling, and the existing control devices are inadequate in addressing that reality.
According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a control for controlling speed of a motor for a watercraft, the control in communication with the motor and comprising:
a base;
a power supply connected to the base;
a base speed system comprising:
a base speed set means on the base for pre-setting a base speed level; and
a base speed activation means on the base for directing the motor to operate at the base speed level; and
a reset speed system comprising:
a reset speed set means on the base for pre-setting a reset speed amount; and
a reset speed activation means on the base for directing the motor to operate at a speed beyond the base speed level by the reset speed amount.
According to a second aspect of the present invention there is provided a control for controlling both speed and steering of a motor for a watercraft, the control in communication with the motor and comprising:
a base;
an interface pivotally connected by a pivot to the base, the pivot separating and defining a first end and a second end of the interface, such that depressing the first end directs the motor to steer the watercraft in a first direction and depressing the second end directs the motor to steer the watercraft in a second, opposed direction;
a power supply connected to the base;
a base speed system comprising:
a base speed set means on the base for pre-setting a base speed level; and
a base speed activation means on the base for directing the motor to operate at the base speed level; and
a reset speed system comprising:
a reset speed set means on the base for pre-setting a reset speed amount; and
a reset speed activation means on the base for directing the motor to operate at a speed beyond the base speed level by the reset speed amount.
In some exemplary embodiments of the present invention, the control is foot-operated and the interface is a foot interface, the interface is pivotally connected at a generally central point to the base, and the first direction is to the right or starboard of the watercraft and the second, opposed direction is to the left or port of the watercraft. The control preferably comprises power activation means for selectively activating the control. Preferably, the power activation means, base speed set means, reset speed set means, base speed activation means, and reset speed activation means are devices whose signals are controlled by a circuit board, and the control communicates with the motor by radio-control means or cable electronics. The reset speed activation means is preferably but not necessarily a tap switch on the first end of the foot interface for ease of use, and the base speed set means and reset speed set means are preferably rotary or linear variable resistance devices. The foot-operated control also preferably comprises a reset speed system activation switch which enables the use of a single switch (tap switch) for both base speed activation means and reset speed activation means depending on whether it is switched on.
According to another aspect of the present invention, a first method of using the present invention is provided comprising the steps of:
(a) manipulating the base speed set means to set the base speed level;
(b) manipulating the reset speed set means to set the reset speed amount;
(c) causing the motor to operate at the base speed level by activating the base speed activation means; and
(d) causing the motor to operate at a speed beyond the base speed level by the reset speed amount by activating the reset speed activation means when desired due to shifting environmental conditions.
According to a further aspect of the present invention, a second method of using the present invention is provided comprising the steps of:
(a) manipulating the base speed set means to set the base speed level;
(b) causing the motor to operate at the base speed level by activating the base speed activation means;
(c) manipulating the reset speed set means to set the reset speed amount; and
(d) causing the motor to operate at a speed beyond the base speed level by the reset speed amount by activating the reset speed activation means when desired due to shifting environmental conditions.
The present invention accordingly addresses the need for a control device that effectively responds to shifting environmental conditions, as is described more fully below. A detailed description of an exemplary embodiment of the present invention is given in the following. It is to be understood, however, that the invention is not to be construed as limited to this embodiment.